Indian food industry delegation hosted by USINPAC

Washington, DC: USINPAC hosted a dinner reception for visiting Food Safety experts from India, here on a leadership mission to review the US national food safety standards and examine how stakeholders at local and state level cooperate to maintain industry compliance to international standards. The dinner reception was also attended by prominent Indian Americans.

The delegation was represented by officials from the Government of India and leaders from the Indian food industry; Ms. Chinmayee Deulgaonkar, Business Head, Food and Beverages, DNV GL, Dr. Prabodh Halde, of Marico Ltd., Ms. Snehal Khedkar, and Ms. Lydia Vedhakkan from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and Ms. Seema Shukla and Mr. Anil Thokchom from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Discussion centered around the development and implementation of food safety standards and best practices in India and in the US. The Indian delegation presented latest innovations in food technology with a focus on harnessing the ancient knowledge of Ayurveda. The visitors were briefed about the advocacy role of USINPAC and AUSIB, in bringing together Indian and American leaders to improve bilateral relations, including in trade and commerce.

The Indian food industry experts, will visit universities, farms, processing facilities, and U.S. ports to learn best practices that benefit all system stakeholders. They will get a chance to examine the U.S. food safety system from farm-to-table for a variety of commodities and processed foods to observe industry compliance and to determine how state and local structures and procedures are used to support these standards.

Sanjay Puri, Chairman, US India Political Action Committee, welcomed the delegation adding, “Forty years ago Indian and American scientists Norman Borlaug and M.S. Swaminathan set off the Green revolution by working together on an obscure range of dwarf seeds. This led to food production doubling throughout Asia and Africa. By pooling our talent and investments, we can trigger a food safety revolution and growth in trade between these two democracies.”

About USINPAC

The US India Political Action Committee (USINPAC) is the voice of over 3.2 million Indian- Americans and works on issues that concern the community. It supports candidates for local, state and federal office and encourages political participation by the Indian- American community. Visit www.usinpac.com for more details.